MOYROSS community leaders have accused Limerick Mayor John Moran of “robbing” the future and safety of children by intervening in a plan to develop 78 houses in Pineview Gardens.
Local parish priest Fr Pat Hogan and Adrian Power, chair of the Moyross Partners community group, accused the Mayor of unnecessarily delaying the proposed housing development.
In an apparent dig at a recent initiative by Mayor Moran to close off a section of the city-centre and create a sandy beachfront to encourage people to relax and enjoy their surroundings, they said that “what (Moyross residents) require is not an invitation to build sandcastles at the top of O’Connell Street, but urgent action to provide them with a place to call home”.
“As Howard Zinn once said, ‘the greatest injustice is using law and authority to strip people of what they need for survival.’ This is exactly what Mayor Moran is doing— robbing these children of their future, their homes, and their safety,” they said in a joint statement issued to this reporter.
Last week Fr Hogan and Mr Power urged the mayor to allow the development proceed as planned, saying they had engaged with Limerick City and County Council and Limerick Regeneration officials over a prolonged period to enable the plan.
In response to this reporter last week, Mayor Moran said he was willing to meet all interested parties.
Mr Moran explained that prior to his election, he had, in his manifesto, “resolved to complete RIAI (Royal Institute of Architects of Ireland) or other design reviews in consultation with the local authority, similar to that done for Colbert Quarter, on all sites, starting with Moyross, with significant growth potential to set parameters for private and public housing on those lands so that a holistic vision of our new city emerges”.
Mr Moran added that his “plan for a design review is to justify a train station in Moyross by rebuilding housing and other facilities in Moyross”.
The mayor stated there would be a “small delay” in the proposed development, but that it was “worth avoiding” a potential risk that the current plans for Pineview Gardens may not be in line with the Government’s Transport Oriented Development (TOD) strategy.
However, Fr Hogan and Mr Power have since claimed Mr Moran failed to respond to their concerns “until the issue was brought to light” in the Limerick Post last week.
They claimed Mayor Moran “is not only disregarding the significant work already done, but is also undermining the expertise and integrity” of those who had worked on the plan.
They argued that, while the residents of Moyross “would welcome a railway station, the immediate and critical issue is housing for children and families who are currently homeless and living in hotels or overcrowded single rooms provided by extended family members”.
“Homeless children cannot wait for symbolic gestures or long-term infrastructure plans. They need homes – now.”
Fr Hogan and Mr Power also claimed the Mayor has not engaged with the local community where he canvassed for votes ahead of his election to the inaugural position last June.
“To delay a housing project is to escalate its costs. Who will bear the burden of these increased costs? Will Mayor Moran?” they asked.
In response, a spokesman for the Mayor explained that a meeting about the Pineview Gardens housing plan has been arranged between the Mayor and community representatives and that Moran is focused on delivering the “best possible outcomes” for the area and that he has attended numerous engagements in Moyross since his election last June.
